I__. - International Military Testing Association

however, would be to determine whether or not special classification testing is warranted.
Since job performance can frequently be improved by selecting individuals with particular
skills and/or by training particular skills, the trade-offs implied by testing for selection
versus training would have to considered.
Two research efforts are currently planned to develop the tailored classification
batteries. The first effort will expand upon the Cognitive Requirements Model (CRM)
developed by Hay Systems, Inc. to include spatial and psychomotor elements. This new
model, CRM+, will employ decision flow diagrams to guide job experts through the
elements of the model. Attributes identified in this manner will be compared across jobs
to determine the similarity and differences in job requirements. The same information will
also be used to identify classification tests most likely to improve the person-job match
within the job set.
The second effort to develop tailored test batteries will build upon the research
conducted in the Army’s Synthetic Validation Project (SynVal) by the American Institutes
for Research with Personnel Decisions Research Inc. and the Human Resources Research
Organization. Subject matter experts will be asked either to identify directly the importance
and level of attributes for jobs or to identify job tasks from the Army Task Taxonomy.
Either visual inspection of the resulting profiles or more formal clustering algorithms will
then be used to compare the profiles. The profile elements may then be matched up with
the predictor tests. The identified tasks can be linked, using the results of SynVal, to
attributes and to the tests which measure those attributes (or the directly identified
attributes may themselves be used to identify the appropriate predictor tests).
An important consideration of both these efforts will be to develop valid procedures
that are credible and can be employed by non-scientists. Indeed, it is expected that any
additional testing that may be adopted by the Army will be administered, scored and used
in the assignment decision-making process by Army personnel during basic training, prior
to the start of Advanced Individual Training. Therefore, the procedures must be
straightforward, non-technical, and cost-efficient. A demonstrable value for administering
any additional tests (i.e, improved job performance, reduced training time, lower attrition)
to off-set the costs and inconvenience of specialized testing must be clearly evidenced.
The third JSERT research focus is on the development of an appraisal feedback system
for the JSERT “system” itself. The goal of the feedback system is to monitor the
performance of JSERT, not the job performance of individuals per se. Although ratings
of performance or training needs may be solicited from supervisors and individual soldiers,
the ratings would be used for research purposes or for operational changes to the JSERT
system, not to affect the careers of the rated individuals. The concern is to set up a
monitoring system so that if jobs change over time or there is a shift in the overall abilities
of soldiers being enlisted, the Army would have some consistent means of evaluating the
change, documenting the impact on job performance and notifying the system that some
action is needed.
It may be, for example, that initial job analyses did not include some ability which,
alihough not currently measured by the Army, turns out to be important for job
performance. The Army may wish to specifically select individuals with this ability, but
presently there is no mechanism in place that would even uncover the requirement for that
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